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Di Canio eyeing success

Paolo Di Canio can’t wait to get to stuck into his new managerial challenge after being confirmed as Sunderland’s new head coach.

Di Canio was appointed on Sunday and appeared before a packed press conference on Wearside early on Tuesday morning.

We will have to cope with some injuries and some problems, but already members of the club have been very helpful to me

- Paolo Di Canio

The Italian enjoyed great success during his first managerial posting at Swindon and is targeting further progress after arriving in the Barclays Premier League.

“It’s obvious that it was a different league, but it is difficult to win at any level,” he said.

“I came from abroad and my English was not fantastic but I delivered a good message to my players.

“We won the championship in League Two and I left the club at the top with the best defensive record and the best attacking record.

“Those records came from the hard job we did during the week. I want to do exactly the same here.”

He added: “Obviously I couldn’t expect straight away to have this opportunity at a top club like Sunderland, but it happened.

“That means someone believes that Paolo Di Canio can do the right job. It’s very important to have the support from the people who decided to bring me here.”

Di Canio met his squad for the first time on Monday and inherits a group of players shorn of top scorer Steven Fletcher and captain Lee Cattermole through injuries.

But he’s ready to adapt, saying: “The problem at the moment is I couldn’t build the [Sunderland] team since the beginning, but this is not an excuse. I have decided to come here so I have no excuse.

Always I have been thinking in a positive way and I have never had a worry in a big challenge

- Paolo Di Canio

“I will probably have to work in a different way. We will have to cope with some injuries and some problems, but already members of the club have been very helpful to me, so I am very happy and we are ready to deal with this very good challenge.”

That challenge begins with a trip to European champions Chelsea on Sunday – the first fixture of a seven-game run-in to the end of the season.

“It’s a different level, a different stage and different clubs we are going to play against,” Di Canio added. “Chelsea away for the first game is fantastic.

“Always I have been thinking in a positive way and I have never had a worry in a big challenge. I want the risk to lose but with a big chance to win and make a difference.”